Where does amazing start?
The sign, a miracle, arriving
Love waiting to care, his heartache
Here from the beginning
Needed since we listened to
and believed a lie and death came.
Celebration, waiting for life,
The right moment coming
A miracle beginning, here.
No one expected it to be now
This perfect time
and it nearly was missed
By everyone – except a mother
Who listened and obeyed.

So, now the best waited
For eternity to begin creating
Who knew, Who’d a thought
That it would be at a wedding
In a tiny village, Cana of all places!
Gathered to celebrate, not realising
The groom was not invited
But, here he is, creating,
One person listened, she knew,
Here is the beginning of hope,
The sign is among us, She says,
watch, listen and follow.

What did the water know?
Transformation into wine
Isn’t easy, first crushed
Then the outpoured juice
Waits, for the transformation.
And, thankfully it came
Disaster averted, for now,
Because, the best was coming,
When bruised and broken,
The sign of hope, is crushed
Disaster crowded in loudly,
Sleepless nights, not knowing
resurrection was arriving,
Waiting for the right time
Calling to believe and follow
Transforming, now.

Truth sometimes is a sideways
path that isn’t clear,
Pointing me to an unexpected way
But, sometimes what is here now,
Is the truth that is most important.
When I need to trust the most
Is when I need to simply obey,
Trust is about giving – My enough
is saying I need a miracle, today,
Because, I don’t trust enough
I know this much is true.
I come to the flesh, seeking
to trust, but not loving its cost
When I am told to go home
All my love wants a different way
Not this path, I want to say
But, I don’t speak what I feel,
I trust, I go home
Allowing the miracle to happen
In that moment, transformation.

Compassion forgotten by religion
Finds a man by a pool – paralysed
Healing is a long way away, over there,
Just a few steps but impossible
Seen by eyes that should know better
Bile rises up, seeing the misery of suffering.
Left by religion, holy days that don’t love,
Empty, hollow, shadows of love’s intent,
Religion that has forgotten its need of grace
Is disarmed by compassion’s voice, and
a question, “Do you want healing”.

Fearless love spoken, where it’s needed,
Where pain is gathered and love forgotten
Holy’s shadow, contained in a single day
That doesn’t love or care or know grace
This shadow avoiding life, speaking hate
Shrinks to shrill accusations – anxious
about its future, holy days with no hope
Are about to die – their end in sight
Because, this man wants to be healed
A stirring, seeking healing and grace,
I want to be healed too.

Do we really want to know healing?
Or is there more condemnation
waiting to be spoken, choosing death
When freedom is right there, ready
to be embraced, if we want to be healed
Why not pick up our mat? Or rise up?
Good news that is not welcomed
Finds its way into useless debate,
Over what is really holy – forgetting joy
Worship celebrates hope, not darkness
It loves to dance and sing and laugh,
It doesn’t sit by the pool, no,
It rises up and becomes the temple,
Whole and strong and rebuilt, resurrection
rising up within me, healing right here.

Impossible is where the loaves and fishes
become faith’s first tentative steps,
Overwhelmed by expectations
Daunted by the hum of the crowd
Their hunger growing by the minute,
Expecting a word,
Hope, and its signs,
The Voice, present, here now
Walking up the mountain, to listen.

Eternity, speaking to us again,
The longing to follow
Speaking to my heart,
Until hunger reminds me where I am.

Quiet, stop, be here now
Listen to the demands of hunger
Its grinding
Deep inside
Telling me something is missing,
I want to be fed
Knowing that I will be hungry tomorrow.

Impossible is looking at loaves and fishes
Believing that they are not enough
Not nearly enough,
I resist sitting, I want action,
Struggling with waiting with not enough
Faith is blessed, five loaves, two fish,
That is enough,
More than enough, it’s abundance,
A sign, given again,
Where is faith now?
Not with the sign,
No, he is alone, listening,
Inviting me to leave the crowd too,
To listen, to see the impossible,
To feel the hunger, but be thankful,
Nothing is wasted.

“Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him God the Father has placed his seal of approval.”

After the storm there is quiet,
My fear fades into the distance,
Walking on water isn’t the sign,
It simply reminds me of my fear,
How rough the waves can be,
How easily my life is overturned,
How much the crowds love miracles,
How quickly they follow then turn,
How together they miss the point,
Seeking, seeking the next best thing,
Following and missing truth’s voice.

After the storm in the quietness,
I am with Jesus and the crowds,
Remembering my fear in the storm,
Desiring retreat into stillness,
Knowing I can’t walk on water,
Knowing I can’t feed five thousand,
Knowing my pitiful measure of faith,
Knowing I sometimes follow the crowd,
Knowing I am seeking a messiah too,
Knowing, knowing but alone and lonely,
Seeking and finding belief out of silence.

Eyes fully open, but not knowing,
A lifetime lived blindly, in the shadow,
Missing a world that is waiting
I don’t know what it’s like to see,
With both eyes registering fully,
The beauty and horrors of sight.
Living in shadows without light
reality formed out of darkness
Without shade and perspective,
Futile debate about responsibility
achieves nothing, delaying healing.
Here I am, seeing, waiting for me,
The light of the world washing away
shadows, chasing them into the night,
Day has arrived, for me, today,
“Sent” to wash, obedient to the voice,
Believing in the truth that is seen,
With eyes opening in the darkness,
Shadows relentlessly chased by the light,
Bowing before the truth, Moses’ truth
overshadowed by the one, showing the way
Standing before me, now, a light for the world.

Wait, be here now,
The anxious cries of life
Will always seek comfort
Life doesn’t understand, Worrying
about what is expected,
Tomorrow, Today’s wisdom is,
do what is here now,
Befriend this moment,
Let love be fully present
Even when hope has despaired.

A promise about life,
Seems impossible, To me,
Death arrived, My
sadness evidence of great love,
Compassion sheds a tear,
With me,
Knowing, that life is coming,
Soon, even while I grieve,
Sobbing as only love can sob,
Even death and its final separation,
Has to obey love.

The act of faith, committed,
When the stone is rolled away,
Life emerges,
Death, is seeing a new reality,
Its vestiges want to cling,
Its grave clothes holding onto me,
The Voice and flesh’s words
Heard today,
I am listening and imagining,
My tears, flowing,
Knowing what is lost, Dying,
My tears for yesterday’s sadness,
Wants to stay again today,
Unless I rise up,
Joining with life, anew,
Believing in sadness, weeping,
loving, trusting, Taking off
my grave clothes,
Free to live again, Now.

Today I am going to start …

Today I am going to start living
As only I can live,
I am going to walk in the bush
Listen lovingly to friends,
Take time to hear the birds sing
Love my wife
Be present for my children,
And, wonder at this precious gift
Of life and dreams and time,
Just today, is all I have,
Today I am going to live.